Angel Wings
by twilitprincess
Summary: Sequel to Shadow Wings. Meta Knight leaves on a journey to become stronger but when he returns, he finds devastation and a mysterious winged knight at the center of it all. sucky summary...
1. Time of Parting

**Finally, it's here! The sequel to Shadow Wings! I have finally overcome my writer's block to come up with a good storyline. Well, hopefully it's good because I know how sequels can usually suck. Please remember to review because I need to know if it sucks or not! And, once more, I should make a couple of points before I start…**

**If you voted in the poll, thank you! Unfortunately, not all of the choices there were are going to happen. For example, Dedede is not going to spontaneously combust nor will Sword and Blade get a bigger part. I'm sorry, I tried to fit them in but I just couldn't. ****Second of all, this story is a bit different from the last. It is more like the game (specifically Meta Knightmare Ultra) rather than the anime although the stupid little town that consists of Fumu and the others is still there. Oh and Meta Knight can fly through space like he does in the game too. ****Speaking of Meta Knightmare Ultra, I hope you guys like Galactic Knight.**

**Last of all please review! PLEASE! My life depends on it! I need to know what you all think. I know this chapter gets off to a quick start but…sorry I just wanted to get right into it.**

**Oh and for those of you that haven't read Shadow Wings…go do that. Now. Before you read any further. As for the rest of you…enjoy!**

_Meta Knight was filled with fear._

_An all too familiar face was looming in front of him, its mouth glinting with pointed teeth as it cackled silently. Its eyes were narrowed evilly and half of its face was covered in shadow. A long, star-strewn cloak was wrapped around its hidden body. Shadow surrounded it, swirling black with slashes of purple and red. Meta Knight reached for his sword, but it wasn't there. He tried to fly away, but he realized his wings as well as his cape and armor had disappeared. He felt his face for his mask, but it had gone as well. _

_There he lay, naked and defenseless in front of his nemesis, Nightmare._

"_Meta Knight, you are mine." Nightmare hissed, his voice echoing throughout the nothingness. He reached out, surrounding Meta Knight and trapping him with long, curved fingers. The poor puffball shook uncontrollably, trying to fight the fear that overwhelmed him. "Come to me…come to your master…" The scaly hands closed around him, making it hard to breath. He felt unbearably hot. _

_Then knowledge washed over him like a cold drink of water being poured into his dry throat. This was just a dream. His dream. Now that he knew this was not real, he could turn this nightmare around. _

"_I destroyed you." Meta Knight said, recovering his courage. "You no longer exist, except in mere nightmares. You are dead and you can no longer hurt or kill any more innocent people. Now go back to where you belong and leave me to my future." _

_Nightmare screeched with fury and disappeared back into oblivion. A sense of calm stole over Meta Knight. Nightmare was truly gone. Dreamland was safe. Even in his dream, he was no longer weak and at the mercy of his departed enemy. He had figured out it was a nightmare and was therefore in control. Or was he?_

_Suddenly, the scene changed and Kirby was in front of him, standing in the courtyard of the castle with a pillow. With a giggle the pink puffball stepped forward and pressed the pillow into Meta Knight's face. Meta Knight gave a muffled cry, "Kirby, what are you doing? Kirby…Kirby, stop!" The knight struggled blindly to remove the pillow that was nearly suffocating him, but his arms could not grasp the pillow to pull it off. Kirby laughed like it was all a game as Meta Knight tried to communicate to the young Star warrior that he couldn't breath._

_The whole time, King Dedede had been yelling in the background about how he wouldn't be able to barbeque the Waddle Dees if Kirby didn't give him his pillow back…_

Meta Knight snapped awake only to find that he was laying face down on his pillow, his face pressed so hard into his mask that he was having difficulty drawing air. He sat up and took a great deep breath, feeling better at once. He got up to go get a drink of water, and could hear worried whispers coming from Sword and Blade's room.

"…Sounded like he was having a nightmare, shouting at Kirby to stop whatever he was doing. Do you think we should check on him?"

"Nah, I'm sure he's fine. Go back to sleep."

Meta Knight felt slightly embarrassed that he had been talking in his sleep, but at least he hadn't been shouting complete nonsense. Walking over to the candy jar that sat on the window ledge, he took a piece and popped it into his mouth. The sweet taste immediately made him feel better.

He climbed back into his bed, armor and all, and wrapped himself in his soft pink blanket. Eventually, his eyes became a faded amber and he fell back into a shallow sleep. Still, he couldn't rid himself of that feeling of weakness he had experienced in his dream. For he knew that his dream wasn't the only time he had experienced such a feeling of helplessness, a feeling he had endured many times throughout his long life…and especially in the past year.

Through his light slumber, a question suddenly occurred to him out of nowhere, almost as if someone else had voiced it to him. _If you had one wish…what would you wish for?_

_Hmm…_ Meta Knight thought through his barely conscious mind. _What would I wish for…? _

If asked this question years ago, he probably would have wished for peace in Dreamland or for Nightmare to be defeated. Or, he realized with a twinge of disgust, he would have selfishly wished to be rid of his dark past and his ominous-looking wings. But now that he had gone through such a change in the past year…what would he wish for?

He recalled the feeling of weakness that had enveloped him as he had laid down to rest. The vision of being ever so weak and helpless in front of Nightmare was burned into his mind. It was then that he knew what he would wish for.

_My one wish is to become stronger… _He thought to himself as he finally drifted off into a deeper, dreamless sleep.

* * *

"For the last time, I'll only be gone a couple months. You know that's not as long as it sounds…Dreamland will be safe without me. Oh Kirby, pull yourself together!"

"No! Poyo! No go, Meda!" Kirby squeaked, grabbing Meta Knight's cape and tugging on it, his eyes fierce with protest. After all this time, the young Star Warrior had finally gained enough speaking skill so he could string a small sentence together. Still, he was as difficult to manage as ever since he was still only a couple hundred years old. Meta Knight reached over and pried the puffball's hands off of his cape. Kirby's plan to guilt him into staying was working. He wanted to make this quick.

"I know. I'm no good at farewells either." The knight said gently, unfolding his wings as his cape disappeared. "Yet there is nothing you can do to stop me. My heart is set on this journey. When I return, I will be the strongest swordsman in all of the universe." His eyes burned with determination at these words. Then they softened when he looked back down into Kirby's disappointed face. "Next to you of course." The warrior laughed.

"Don't go!" Kirby wailed, his eyes wide and pleading. "Pwease? I sad pwease!"

"I know you said please," Meta Knight sighed, rolling his bright yellow eyes, "and I'm glad you have such good manners. But saying please isn't going to faze me." _Hopefully, _he added silently. Kirby stomped his foot in frustration.

"Come on Kirby, can't you say a nice goodbye for your mentor?" Sword stated, suddenly appearing as he walked up the hill they were standing on. Blade followed close behind. Kirby kicked at the ground, avoiding their gazes. The little warrior knew he was acting childish, but in his heart he knew he _was_ a child, so he felt justified. Besides, there was no way he was going to let Meta Knight just leave.

"Sword, Blade…" Meta Knight began, but Blade raised a hand for silence.

"We know, my lord. You want us to protect Kirby while you're gone, just like always.

You know we will, sir, you don't have to ask." Blade said cheerfully.

"Maybe next time we can come train with you?" Sword asked hopefully.

Meta Knight nodded, a slight tinge of pink in his amber eyes. "I would like that, but first, I will make this journey of my own." Then he turned to Kirby, looking expectant. There was a long pause. "You have plenty of friends Kirby," Meta Knight reminded him, "You can play with Bun and Fumu while I'm gone."

Suddenly, Kirby brightened up. "You need come say bwi to them!" He said excitedly, glad he had found an excuse to make Meta Knight stay longer. But the knight shook his head, knowing that he couldn't afford to stick around much longer and lose his will to leave altogether.

"You'll have to tell them for me that I said goodbye. King Dedede as well."

"You still haven't said goodbye to Sir Meta Knight." Blade pointed out. Meta Knight felt a twinge of annoyance. He didn't want to stick around all day to find out if Kirby was going to say goodbye or not. He began to turn away, when Kirby spoke up. "Bye." He said hastily, glaring at Meta Knight's feet.

"It's not goodbye forever, Kirby." Meta Knight reminded him, smiling under his mask, "I'll see you sooner or later. Until then, keep doing what you do best and protect the home you love."

The bitterness disappeared from Kirby's face as he heard those wise words. He looked at his mentor, sadness etched in every part of his face. "Ah miss you." He murmured.

"I'll miss you too." Meta Knight said, reaching over to give Kirby a pat on the head. Then he turned to his two most trustworthy knights. "Farewell." He told them.

"The same to you, my lord." Sword murmured.

"We'll expect you to be back in one or two months, then?" Blade asked.

Meta Knight nodded. "That's sounds about right." Then he spread his wings and took off, flapping up into the sky, as those that were closest to him watched him disappear among the clouds and into space.

* * *

Meta Knight sighed, once more going over his farewell to Kirby in his mind. It had been a month now, since then…and almost a year after the horrible events that took place within Nightmare's fortress. No evil had disturbed the land of Dreamland since then. Life was quiet and peaceful, just as it ought to be. Most residents enjoyed the new era of serenity that had descended upon the land. Meanwhile, it had made a few residents restless. Meta Knight was one of these residents.

About a month ago, he had come to the conclusion that he needed to become stronger. Although Nightmare was now defeated, the adventure had opened his eyes to his weaknesses. His skill had softened since the many wars, and he needed to get back to training. Dreamland's lazy lifestyle had taken its toll.

Not long after realizing this, he made it his goal to take a short leave and train. When he told everyone this, Kirby had grown upset, desperate for him to stay. He had no idea what had made the puffball so frantic, but it must have been one of his many strange quirks. After all, it seemed highly unlikely anything bad would happen while he was gone.

Of course, he had left his apprentice in the care of his two most-trusted minions. After that, he had asked for permission from the king before leaving. Dedede's response still made him chuckle under his breath.

"Fine! Go on your vacation and have fun away from the rest of us." The penguin had scoffed. Meta Knight felt amused. One could hardly call it a vacation.

For a whole month, he had been hunting down any remaining demon beasts that had managed to live off the land. He had been engaging many monsters in perilous fights and with each one; he was growing strong once more. He felt extremely pleased with himself and it felt great to be on his own with the freedom to explore wherever he wanted. It made him feel young again.

Food was not a problem, since the planets near Popstar were full of friendly creatures that took in Meta Knight with open arms (that is, if they had arms). Life was good for the knight and he couldn't wait to get home and show off his renewed skill. Yet, he was not yet done exploring the many neighboring planets and planned to continue his quest and only stop when he saw fit.

**In case you were wondering, Nova isn't going to be in this. Having Meta Knight make the same wish he did in the game or a wish to solve all of his problems would be unoriginal. And, no, Nightmare is not going to come back, because I don't like it when you think a villain is dead and all of the sudden they show up like "Surprise! You didn't kill me, I'm still here." There's going to be a new villain for the story, one Kirby fans should know well. Feel free to guess, although I doubt you guys are going to know who it is yet. So yeah…please review!**


	2. Encounters

**Blehh…at this point I'm kind of wishing I never promised you guys a sequel. It's been hard forcing myself to write this. And I don't even usually like sequels so I don't know why I got so hyped up over writing this in the first place. **

**But reading some of your reviews, I'm not about to go back on my promise now. I don't feel motivated to write, but I recently got back into liking Meta Knight a lot thanks to Kirby's Epic Yarn so I'm gonna try my best. This chapter is short and has a cliffhanger because I'm mean. :P I have an Okami fanfiction I've started writing so check that out if you know the game. **

Many months later, Meta Knight flew to a small planet that drifted, unnoticed, through space. From the atmosphere, the planet had looked inviting, but as he flew in for a landing, he realized that the planet was small, cold, and barren. Meta Knight landed softly on his feet, looking around with wide eyes.

Tree lay in pieces, torn to complete shreds, along windswept hillsides. Charred remains of unidentified animals lay half-buried in the dirt. Dust blew across the landscape, the only sound that could be heard all around. The only sign of life was a few stunted weeds that struggled to the surface of the dry earth. Wondering what had happened and how long this planet had been lifeless, Meta Knight walked slowly along a worn dirt path. He didn't have very high expectations of finding water, but something pulled at him to explore the planet. Something seemed to tell him that this desolate place was important…

Deciding he would get a better look from higher up, he spread his wings. A squeal made him jump in surprise and he reflexively pulled out his sword. He turned to see a small creature, half his size, scrambling away through the rocks in fear. Curious, he put his sword away, followed it, and saw it disappear into a small cave on the side of a cliff that surrounded a deep crater. Loud, high-pitched voices arose from inside.

"I saw him, he's back, and he's going to kill us all this time!"

"Did he see you?" A long silence followed the question. The voice rose to a shriek. "He did, didn't he? You fool! You've killed us all!"

Meta Knight crouched above their cave, listening to the panicked conversation, wondering what they could be talking about. They sounded so fearful; he decided he would try to calm them. He alighted down onto the ledge outside the cliff and squeezed himself into the cave hole. Luckily, it was slightly bigger inside. Unluckily, the little creatures screamed when they saw him.

Meta Knight held up his gloved hands to show he meant no harm, but this fueled their panic and then ran over one another to escape to the farthest part of the cave. "Please, calm down! I mean you no harm!" Meta Knight shouted. Surprisingly, they immediately shut up, as if they knew he would smite them if they didn't.

They stared at the knight and he stared back, astounded that these creatures were slightly familiar to him. They looked like Marx, an inhabitant of Popstar that was always playing pranks on the locals. Yet, they didn't look nearly as mischievous. Their eyes were scared, their faces pale and dirty. None wore a fancy hat like him or danced upon a colorful ball. Instead, they huddled together in their small colony, rags twisted into makeshift hats resting upon a few of their heads'. After a long moment of silence, the small one he had first encountered spoke up.

"That's not him. This one is scarier." The larger one that had been screaming at it angrily shoved him against the wall, but looked too frightened to say anything. Meta Knight looked on, wondering what on earth had happened to these puffball-like beings.

"Whatever you think I am, I'm not." He said, trying to appear as harmless as he could, "Now can you please tell me what is going on? What happened to your home?"

They stared at him, too terrified to speak. Finally, the youngest one stepped forward, despite the protests from his little colony. "Are you going to kill us like all the others?" He asked bravely, trying to appear threatening. Meta Knight was instantly reminded of Kirby and his eyes softened.

"No." He replied, but his insides burned to ask who had attacked them.

"Then what do you want?" The child asked, lifting his chin defiantly, although he was shaking like mad.

"I just want to know what happened. I'm a traveler." Meta Knight replied.

The child seemed to consider this. Then he spoke. "A monster killed my family and destroyed our home."

"Smudge, get back here." An older Marx-like creature darted forward to intercept the child and half shoved him back to the huddle at the back of the cave. Then he turned around and glared at Meta Knight. "I don't know who you think you are, but you'd better leave or we'll…we'll…"

"Please." Meta Knight interrupted. "I'm not your enemy. My name is Meta Knight. I am a former knight of the Star Warrior army." He waited for this to spark a reaction, but it didn't. "I've fought many monsters in my lifetime and I'm sure if you point me in the right direction, I am confident I can relieve you of this monster."

The puffballs stared at him as if he had just spoken another language. Finally, the old one mumbled, "Not like that will do us any good. We'll starve to death even if you do."

"I can help you." Meta Knight said, beginning to reach out his hand. Then he realized they didn't have arms and he withdrew it. Young Smudge looked convinced, but most of the others didn't. The knight wondered what had happened that had destroyed this specie's trust and hope.

"If you want to help us, then help us." The older one finally hissed, "Go kill that monster right now. He's living north of here, not too far off. If you manage to destroy it or end up getting yourself killed, so be it. Never show your face here again."

"Very well." Meta Knight said, nodding, "I will do as you say. But if I do kill it, please bear in mind that all is not lost. I'm sure you can find food once you are able to leave this cave safely. For now, keep holding onto what hope you have left." With that, he squeezed out of the cave, shielding his eyes against the bright sunlight.

"He's going to save us!" Smudge squeaked from inside.

"I don't trust him." Came other voices that faded away as Meta Knight flew farther and farther from the hole in the rocks. Whether they trusted him or not, it didn't matter now. He had reminded them that there was hope left in the world, and now he would be going to kill the demon beast that was most likely terrorizing them.

He flew north, over the surface of the destroyed planet, his eyes searching for any sign of a monster. Then he saw something. A little smudge of blue smeared across the ground beneath him. He pulled his wings back and went into a steep dive, coming to light down next to a small pond that had not dried up completely. A few little flowers grew on the edge of the water, healthy and colorful. A large rock overhang cast shade over part of the pond, blocking out the glaring sun.

This is like a miniature oasis… Meta Knight thought to himself as he lifted his mask off and cupped his hands to fill them with water. The cool liquid splashing across his face and slipping into his sandy mouth was refreshing. Sloshing it onto his sore wings, he almost didn't hear the footsteps that were carefully approaching him from behind…

Jamming his mask back onto his face, he quickly grabbed his sword and whipped around. The hot sun blinded him for a moment, but he was able to make out a dark shape before something flew at him and pinned him against the rock overhang.

He focused his eyes in the shade and saw what had attacked him…a puffball, like himself, only slightly bigger. It was pink, like Kirby, had bright pink eyes, and a white mask. But he barely paid attention to these minor details. Meta Knight couldn't take his eyes off the two, pure white angel wings that fanned out on either side of the newcomer.

Fury blazed in this puffball's eyes, turning them bright red for an instant. But as the two winged knights regarded one another, the puffball's red eyes faded back to a dull pink and filled with a new emotion…confusion…and then recognition.

He released Meta Knight and drew back, eyes wide, whispering in hushed amazement, "It's you…!"


	3. Galactic Knight Returns

**Last update for a long, long time.**

"I'm sorry, have we met?" Meta Knight asked, his yellow eyes wide with confusion.

The knight with the angel wings looked away, his eyes wavering on the brink of red. This concerned Meta Knight deeply, for he often associated the red coloring with demon beasts. His sword hand quivered slightly, ready to go for Galaxia at the slightest hint of a fight. But the other puffball did not move.

"You don't remember…" Was all the knight could say. His hands were shaking.

"Remember what?" Meta Knight said, growing impatient. "Who are you?"

"My name is Galactic Knight." The knight said, his eyes flashing as he locked them with Meta Knight's. Meta Knight felt a small wave of shock. Who was this mysterious knight that so closely resembled everything about himself, even his name? This was truly baffling.

He felt ashamed for prying into this newcomer's affairs, but he felt he had to know more, so he took the liberty to introduce himself. "My name is…"

"I know who you are, Meta Knight." Galactic Knight said sharply. "I also know that you were once a Star Warrior, I know you were a demon beast of Nightmare's, and I know that you hold the sacred sword Galaxia."

Meta Knight, disturbed by this knight knowing so much about him, unsheathed his sword. Galactic Knight stared at it for a second, then turned his head away and closed his eyes, as if in regret. "Enough with the introductions." Meta Knight said smoothly, "I want to know who you are and how you know me."

"Many know of you, Meta Knight." Galactic Knight murmured.

"Not many know that I was once a demon beast!" Meta Knight pointed out. "You keep dodging the questions. You're making me suspicious. So please…" He waved his sword for Galactic Knight to go on.

Galactic Knight didn't even bother to reach for his sword, or the shield that was strapped to his back, for that matter. "You really think you can beat me?" Galactic Knight said coldly, "Please. Killing you would be a waste."

"…What?" Meta Knight said, surprised at the knight's refusal to fight.

"Even if you don't remember, I'm not about to kill you. Then it would have been all for nothing." He gave a small laugh, one that held no amusement in it whatsoever.

Meta Knight felt a twinge of frustration. Obviously, this knight was being vague on purpose. He seemed as if he wanted provoke Meta Knight into a fight, but at the same time, couldn't be bothered to lift a finger. Meta Knight tucked his sword back into its sheath. "Fine then." He said curtly, "Be on your way. It would seem that you have nothing to say, so it's best if we don't waste time with our petty arguments."

Galactic Knight's eyes flashed red. Without another word, he spread his wings and took flight, speeding away, disappearing over the horizon in only a few seconds. Only a few white feathers remained. Meta Knight felt a flood of emotions. On one hand, he wanted to chase the knight and demand to know how much he knew about him. On the other hand, he didn't want anything more to do with him.

He sat at the side of the pond with a sigh. He felt tired all of the sudden. He just wanted to curl up and sleep in his own bed. _Well, I've been away for a while…_ He thought quietly, _And I've certainly trained a lot…maybe I should head back_. Suddenly, resolve coursed through him.

"What am I doing?" He said aloud. "I should follow that knight and _demand_ that he tells me what he knows. If not, I'll fight him. He certainly seems like a worthy opponent." Meta Knight couldn't explain it, but he felt the need to fight this puffball that mirrored himself. So he spread his wings and began to fly in the direction that Galactic Knight had gone.

Before he knew it, he was back at the cliff, where the little Marx-like creatures lived.

The shock coursed through him like electricity. He had completely forgotten. A monster that had destroyed their planet and killed most of their kind. A monster that resembled him, but as Smudge had put it, Meta Knight was _scarier_.

Because bat wings were more terrifying than angel wings.

Meta Knight beat his wings even faster, shooting into the cave where the little aliens lived. There they were. All dead. Their little, defenseless bodies slashed up into bits. How could he have been such a fool? How could he not realize that he had been standing so close to a murderer?

Galactic Knight had to possess a great amount of power, to fly here so quickly and demolish the last of this dying race. _He must have been so angry with me…_ Meta Knight thought sadly, looking around at the bloodied corpses, filling with sadness. He remembered how Galactic Knight's eyes had flashed a startling red. _This is all my fault. But I don't understand. Why did I have such an effect on him?_

Knowing that he couldn't lose Galactic Knight now, he gave a silent prayer for the little creatures, and then left the cave. He flew straight up into the sky, powering his wings to climb high into the air. Once up high enough, he began to soar, looking all around the landscape for those bright white wings.

After flying a good distance, he saw something on the ground below him. It was a small white dot. It broke the monotony of the deserted wasteland, standing out among the ground. Curious, Meta Knight glided down and landed neatly on the ground, about a hundred feet from the huddled figure. As he neared it cautiously, he could tell it wasn't Galactic Knight, but one of the Marx-like beings, laying face down on the ground. He stopped, and wasn't going to go any further, but then his sharp eyes detected movement.

"Hey!" Meta Knight called, picking up his pace. "Are you all right?" It didn't react to his words. He reached it and turned it over, carefully. It was Smudge, the littlest one, the one that had been so brave when the others had been so scared. His eyes were glazed with pain. On his chest was a single red wound. Meta Knight picked him up, balancing him in his arms carefully. He was still alive. His chest rose and fell faintly.

"Smudge?" Meta Knight whispered. "What happened?"

The little creature's eyes fluttered pathetically, but he managed to fix Meta Knight in a glassy stare. A ragged moan emerged from deep in his throat, as if he were trying to force words out. He managed to wheeze, "Thought…thought you were gonna…save us…" Then he burst into a fit of coughing.

"You're going to be all right." Meta Knight murmured soothingly, "I'll get help…" but he knew that would not be the case. There was no help for miles around.

But Smudge barely seemed to hear him. He kept staring, his breath coming in short gasps. "Said you'd…help us…" He whispered faintly, "You'll…save…us…" He let out a long sigh, his glassy eyes no longer staring at Meta Knight. His chest had stopped moving. Meta Knight reached forward and closed Smudges eyes with a gloved hand.

He laid the child on the ground, making sure to be as gentle as possible. He knew this brave little creature should be buried, but that would have to wait now.

Meta Knight's yellow eyes flashed red for just a moment. It had been a long time since he felt such an intense wave of anger. He reached for his sword and unsheathed it. He unfolded both of his large, leathery wings. Then he lifted his face to the sky, and shouted in his loudest voice, "Galactic Knight!"

"It would seem that you think I have something to say after all."

He whipped around. Galactic Knight stood there, wings spread, a sword in one hand, his shield in the other. Without a sound or any warning at all, Meta Knight launched himself at the other knight, eyes blazing with fury.

Galactic Knight held up his shield and easily blocked Meta Knight's first attack. Meta Knight recoiled, feinted, and struck again. But Galactic Knight seemed to be able to predict every move the Star Warrior went to make. Each time, Galactic Knight either blocked with his shield or parried the blow with his sword, but he never tried to hit Meta Knight himself. And so, Meta Knight opened his wings, forcing his enemy to follow him into the air. But Galactic Knight was just as invincible there.

"Why must we go on with this foolish display?" Galactic Knight laughed in a deep voice. Those words reminded Meta Knight of a distant memory, but this was no time to consider the past. Galactic Knight swung his pointed sword at Meta Knight without warning. It was the first time in this battle he had gone on the offense and Meta Knight was taken by surprise. The slice carved a neat gash on his right wing. He felt his flight become unbalanced.

There was no way he was going to win now when he couldn't even land a blow before.

_I've been training for months! How can this be? _Meta Knight's head screamed, as he paused to hover.

"Maybe I should just kill you now." Galactic Knight said, his pink eyes turning to red. "Or better yet…head on back to Dreamland and kill good old King Dedede and Kirby of the Stars instead."

Meta Knight couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was impossible. How could this knight know so much?

Then he did something he had never done before. He turned and fled from his enemy. It hurt his pride to do so, but he knew the right thing to do was get away, rather than stay and be killed. Galactic Knight watched him go, his eyes a mix of amusement and annoyance. Meta Knight dared not to look back to see if he was being followed. This knight was truly dangerous. He knew things he should not know. He killed without remorse. He had to get back home _now_ and warn everyone.

He shot out of the planet's atmosphere, hurtling into space. His right wing stung and protested painfully at the exertion he was placing on it, but pure adrenaline kept him going. It was so far away. He knew Galactic Knight could get there ahead of him if he wanted to. He could destroy Dreamland just as he destroyed that poor barren planet…

_How did a single knight like him manage to bring destruction upon a whole planet?_ Meta Knight wondered for a moment. That didn't matter right now. What did matter was getting back to Dreamland.

He would be able to see Kirby again, finally, and even King Dedede, Sword, Blade, and all the rest of them. It would be a short-lived, happy reunion, but then they would have to prepare for Galactic Knight. There was no doubt the knight would show up there. "Kirby can beat him." Meta Knight told himself, "Kirby can beat anyone…"

With a determined nod, Meta Knight kept pumping his wings, hurtling through space at a great speed, on the way towards his home…

Galactic Knight hesitated for a moment longer on the dry, dusty earth. He looked at his surroundings. It was too bad he had to leave. This planet had provided a good outlet for him. Really, he felt bad for killing the innocent creatures that had inhabited it, but he had learned to let go of remorse a long time ago. It was the only thing he could do.

Still, he was uncertain of what to do about that Meta Knight character. Should he take revenge on him? Or protect the gift he had given him, the gift of life? Obviously, Meta Knight didn't remember him. He wasn't thankful for this gift, but then again, he wasn't the one who had tricked him back then…

Galactic Knight shrugged. Oh well. For the time being, this would make an interesting game. He was the strongest warrior in the galaxy…as far as he was concerned, he could do whatever he pleased.

Once he was certain Meta Knight had gotten _just_ enough of a head start, he spread his wings and left the planet he had stained with so much blood.

Miles ahead, out in space, Meta Knight suddenly caught the faint sound of wing beats following him, pursuing him…


End file.
